Maker Monday: How to make your own knitting loom and start knitting

Welcome to another installment of our Maker Monday “Let’s Try” videos, created by our friends at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh. We’re happy to bring you another free maker activity.

This week’s project will teach kids to make their own knitting looms with materials you probably have around the house right now. With this homemade loom, they can create all kinds of beautiful things, including a DIY garland included in this activity.

You’ll find all the details on materials and instructions right here, and you can follow along on the video below to learn each easy step. A note to kid makers: Please work with a parent or caregiver on every project and always be very careful when using tools of any kind.

Maker Monday materials you’ll need:

• an empty cardboard toilet paper roll
• 2 or 3 straws, each one cut in half
• tape
• scissors
• yarn for your first knitting project

Instructions:

• Use the tape to attach the cut-in-half straw pieces around the empty toilet paper roll. (You’ll want more than an inch of the straw to be sticking out over the end of the roll.)
• Once you’ve taped on all the straw pieces, add an extra piece of tape around all of the straws to make them very secure. Now you have a loom!
• Drop the end of your yarn into the toilet paper roll and pull about 3 inches of the end of the yarn out of the bottom.
• Then wrap the yarn in loops around the straws, inside to outside.
• Drape the yarn on the first straw and over the first loop.
• Pull the bottom loop over the yarn and cast it over the straw. (See video.) You just made your first stitch!
• Give the tail that comes down through the roll a little pull after each completed stitch.
• Repeat until you reach your desired length of rope or you run out of yarn.
• When you’re ready to complete the project, snip the excess yarn.
• Take one of the loops and pull it off the straw, then place it over the straw to the right.
• Pull the bottom loop on that straw over the top loop and then take it off the straw.
• Repeat this process with each remaining straw until you have one loop left.
• Pull that loop off the straw and pull it tight.

Want more at-home fun making beautiful things? Check out more Maker Monday videos from Kidsburgh and the Children’s Museum.